The Heritage Rhode Island Red Site

[Fred's Hens]

I shipped 3 top grade K's out yesterday. The box was $20 and the freight was $50, half way across the country. But, for that money, the buyer hopefully gets 3, hand picked K's. They've been hatched, fed, and 90% brooded out.

Not cheap, I grant you, but constantly buying disappointment at $50 a box for shipped eggs is not cheap and very time consuming. If you really do the math on incubating costs and brooding costs and the time involved? It's much, much closer to being a wash monetarily then most folks think.

 

[SallyinIndiana]

Very very heartbroken over hatching this year. Out of three dozen I really only have one chick. Not the senders fault at all. They were packed beautifully. The USPS pretty much scrambled them. I got one chick out of the first dozen. The other eggs either never developed or quit a week before hatch I think due to the horrible air cell damage. Got another two dozen sent and knew right away I was not going to get much. All the air cells were detached. Had some that were pretty porous. At 14 days only four tried to develop. Im down to two now. I saw movement tonight but worry bout hatch. The air cells are so disfigured its amazing. Looks like a roller coaster track lol. Gonna have to cut my losses this year and hope I can just buy chicks next year. Crossing my fingers the one chick I have hatched is a roo.

I recommend getting a trio or a quad from a breeder this fall or early winter once they have set up their breeding pens and have left overs.
I started with these reds by buying chicks. I got a few sumatra hens when I bought a quad to sit on HRIR eggs if I liked the broody thing. I have to say buying the quad saved me so much time and the money really did not cover more than the feed the breeder had fed the them.

And I was able to set lots of sumatra eggs in my incubator before they started going broody. So in a few months I'll have lots of free ranging chickens that will make good mother hens. It really really beats starting out with eggs or even chicks.

 

[desertmarcy]

Very very heartbroken over hatching this year. Out of three dozen I really only have one chick. Not the senders fault at all. They were packed beautifully. The USPS pretty much scrambled them. I got one chick out of the first dozen. The other eggs either never developed or quit a week before hatch I think due to the horrible air cell damage. Got another two dozen sent and knew right away I was not going to get much. All the air cells were detached. Had some that were pretty porous. At 14 days only four tried to develop. Im down to two now. I saw movement tonight but worry bout hatch. The air cells are so disfigured its amazing. Looks like a roller coaster track lol. Gonna have to cut my losses this year and hope I can just buy chicks next year. Crossing my fingers the one chick I have hatched is a roo.

Your experience is one reason why I don't sell hatching eggs. I get people wanting to buy hatching eggs from me all the time. I guess they think it is more cost effective. Sometimes you get lucky, but so many times, you would be better off with chicks. And a reputable breeder will have already culled and not send you any that might hatch with obvious deformities like crooked toes, cross beak. Started quads or trios are nice but if you are not close enough to a breeder whose stock you want, the shipping will be very expensive.

 

[monnie662]

I've 9 HRIR eggs in lock down, now keeping the humidity up and hoping the electricity stays on with all these thunder storms that have been coming through the last few days, my rain gauge is showing 4 inches but got 2 inches overnight.

 

[cmom]

I've 9 HRIR eggs in lock down, now keeping the humidity up and hoping the electricity stays on with all these thunder storms that have been coming through the last few days, my rain gauge is showing 4 inches but got 2 inches overnight.

I have lost power before. Here is what I did.

 

[forgetful]

You can't determine gender by comb and wattles at three weeks, right? A friend of mine came by to look at my reds, and he swore up and down I had almost a full batch if roosters. I refuse to believe him, and don't see much development. I read you could tell at 8 weeks?

 

[ronott1]

I have lost power before. Here is what I did.




My Genesis incubators are designed to run on 12V Batteries. I have this setup:

 

[cmom]

Quote:
I have used a battery too in the past.

 

[cmom]

You can't determine gender by comb and wattles at three weeks, right? A friend of mine came by to look at my reds, and he swore up and down I had almost a full batch if roosters. I refuse to believe him, and don't see much development. I read you could tell at 8 weeks?

You are correct. You cannot tell at 3 weeks what gender the chicks are. Most hatches as around 50/50.

 

[forgetful]

You are correct. You cannot tell at 3 weeks what gender the chicks are. Most hatches as around 50/50.

Thank you! I honestly wouldn't worry about a full batch of roosters, since I would have a larger selection to choose from, but he was quite firm on his announcement, and I'm just as stubborn on my opinion.